Friday night's NFL preseason games provied several reminders why Florida State won the BCS title last season. Four of the seven former Seminoles selected in the 2014 draft made their professional debuts and showed every bit of that college championship pedigree. No surprise, the two biggest splashes were made in the NFC South — in the heart of ACC country.

Kelvin Benjamin, WR, Panthers. The No. 28 overall pick made the game-winning catch in Pasadena against Auburn in his final college game. In his first pro game, he made a catch that will be hard to top in his rookie season with Carolina.

Before the dazzling debut, we heard about him catching everything in training camp practice and his immediate chemistry with quarterback Cam Newton. Then he proved the former without help from the latter. Benjamin was overthrown by backup quarterback Derek Anderson on his first target in Carolina's first series. Go figure: The 6-5 wideout went low to haul his second target on the second possession with brilliant sliding grab in the end zone. We knew about his size and hands, but Benjamin's speed to get downfield outside is underrated. The Panthers have a real No. 1 receiver.

Devonta Freeman, RB, Falcons. How did this dynamic back last until the fourth round, again? Atlanta's coaches are reluctant to let Freeman loose while Steven Jackson is hamstrung and out because they have reservations about his ability to consistently pass protect. Whenever they're comfortable with Freeman, however, there's no reason he shouldn't be their preferred option in the backfield. Against the Dolphins, Jacquizz Rodgers and Antone Smith entered the game ahead of him, but he blew past them in impact.

Rodgers did score a TD on the Falcons' opening drive. Everything else was advantage: Freeman. He rushed for 50 yards on 10 carries, and his biggest highlight came on a 57-yard reception. The team has been missing that kind of pop in its running game, and if Freeman can just make them trust his blocking for Matt Ryan, they have to trust that they need to feature him soon, even over a healthy-to-play Jackson.

Lamarcus Joyner, DB, Rams. The second-rounder was bound to have chances to make a lot of plays in subpackages, working behind St. Louis' awesome pass rush. He also fits the physical nastiness that permeates throughout a Jeff Fisher-Gregg Williams defense. Joyner made two tackles, but the one that left a real mark on the Saints was his second-quarter drag-down of wide receiver Nick Toon on a red-zone third-and-five.

Telvin Smith, OLB, Jaguars. We already told you he was more than a darkhorse candidate to win NFL defensive rookie of the year. The leader of Florida State's dominant defense has translated that to a likely starting outside job in Jacksonville, setting him to be a terrific fifth-round steal. He started against the Buccaneers and made his presence felt with his pursuit, both on defense and special teams.

Consider this sequence near the end of the first quarter: Smith's pressure off the edge forced Josh McCown to throw an interception, and Smith's block allowed teammate Winston Guy to turn into a 68-yard touchdown return. On the ensuing kickoff, Smith chased down track-star Bucs returner Jeff Demps. You can't coach speed, and Smith has it and instincts in spades.